What can you tell me about hydraulic fracturing?

Do you havea well?
Here are two examples of problems:
Here
and Here

@worriedguy on my property?

We have city water, but we do have a well on our property.. with a pump like this, however we typically use that water for the garden, rather than for drinking.
And SHEESH!

They pump water and other crap down into cracks in the ground rock to “fracture” it and release the oil/gas/fossil fuels within.

In theory, this shouldn’t effect ground water as it is literally hundreds, if not thousands of feet below the ground water level. So far studies seem to support that theory.

But very little else is known about the environmental effects of “fracking”, as almost no studies have been done on it, and it’s only been employed for a short time.

@ANef_is_Enuf My concern is that it’s exempted from the Clean Water Act. The drillers can pump anything they want into the ground, including diesel fuel. Basically, they pump huge volumes of water mixed with sand and other materials into the shale to break it up and release the gas. They have been doing it for a few years in PA and they have totally screwed up a ton of water wells. There are people in PA that can light fires from their faucets. One house had their wellhead explode.

Sounds like a posh way of saying someone’s broke wind, but that’s probably just me….the translation that is, not the fart!

@Adirondackwannabe that’s what I heard, as well. Not about the flammable drinking water, but that they can pump whatever they want into the ground… and that they do. Just a tiny bit of research seems to indicate that it is illegal, or at least on hold, in several countries.
The only complication that I’m aware of locally is the earthquakes, but that was enough to get my attention. I think the only earthquake I’ve ever felt was when I was 6 years old. I think now we’ve had.. 4 or 5… this year already.

Here is some more discussion about the technology and issues surrounding it.

@ANef_is_Enuf I’m not sure about the earthquake connection, but I’ve read theories about it. I’m just concerned about the potential for water pollution. Let me see if I can find the recent article about the poor people in PA that can’t use their wells because of the drilling.

@Adirondackwannabe well, I don’t know if it is factual or theory.. but I got that info from the local news. In my opinion, it would be absolutely shocking if the two weren’t connected. Considering that the earthquakes started when the fracking started, a person would be hard pressed to convince me that there isn’t a connection.
However, water pollution is my biggest concern, as well. As I said, I have city water… but I do have a well on my property. That well was a source of water for my family when a massive tornado all but demolished my town, and I would hope to be able to rely on it in the future, in case of emergency. Also, as I have mentioned many times previously around here, I live in an area that was severely economically depressed before the recession. Without looking up the official numbers, I can only imagine the number of people who would be devastated if their wells were affected by this, particularly because a large portion of the local population uses well water exclusively.
The location is another factor.

@ANef_is_Enuf I found the site but haven’t been able ot get a link to the article. It’s under the Pressconnects.com site under the drilling issues. Dimock PA has been dealing with gas problems for the past three years. The gas companies have been trucking in their water since then. I’ll try to get a link to the story.
Go to the news site, and look under the marcellus shale news. The story is there.

@ANef_is_Enuf Get your well water tested now. Then you will have before and after evidence. The fracker’s claim they have no idea what the wells were like before they did the fracking. They counterclaim the wells were like that before. It is total BS, but residents have no proof. If you get yours done now, for $75, you will have the proof. Most people in your area do not have wells so you are a very valuable special case. Do it.

My area is not served by city water. We all have our own wells and every one has been tested. We are ready if ANYTHING changes. Some folks even have Stealth Trail cameras in the woods watching for fracking activity, recording dates and times – and license numbers.

Steath Camera: $100.
External battery for 1 month constant operation: $30
Well water testing: $75

Data for lawsuit: Priceless!

Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, involves drilling a long vertical pipe deep into the ground and sucking up petroleum/natural gas (way more complicated than that, but that’s the drift). At issue is the fact that the pipe passes through the water table, the source of our drinking water.

The petroleum deposits in question are way, way below the water table. So the drilling industry constantly, and correctly, points out that it is unlikely for those petrochemicals to migrate through solid bedrock upwards into the water table.

What they don’t point out is the danger of fluids and chemicals used in the pipes leaking into the water table. And apparently that’s happened a few times and they’ve settled in court and essentially covered up.

On the upside, fracking tech has improved. And natural gas (which is what it extracts) is cleaner than some other energy sources.